The term “shrimp” doesn’t typically evoke an image of a fearsome creature, but what if you combined the obscure and dangerous Peacock Mantis Shrimp with a Dragon? Lego builder, and imaginative creator, Joss Ivanwood, who takes pride in designing and building “dragons, robots, monsters, and more,” has merged the otherworldly mantis shrimp with a dragon. The use of bright colors, combined with what can only be assumed is an expert-level application of LEGO Technic joints, transforms a fish’s nightmare into a vibrant and imaginative reality.
Tag Archives: Jayfa
Draconis Wisteria is a garden-variety dragon with a twist
As we cross the halfway point of 2024, Joss Ivanwood (jayfa_mocs) continues his Year of the Dragon LEGO celebration with his sixth offering: Draconis Wisteria. June’s dragon is a tribute to the flowering wisteria vine. The idea first came to Joss at the start of the year, but it took until now for the vision to fully come together and the results truly soar. Joss excels at organic shaping in his builds, especially when liberated by the chaotic outgrowths of roots and vines, as he demonstrated with his orchid-inspired Demogorgon. The model masterfully incorporates a lot of snaking brown parts that you would expect with the theme, and a few parts you might not, like a hairpiece for upper maw, and golden One Ring eyes. This dragon is such a perfect execution of a concept that just feels right. I can imagine the majestic beast nesting on a pergola, draping its wings to create a lavender canopy and perfectly camouflaging itself in plain sight.
With six months remaining, I can’t wait to see what other imaginative spins on the dragon Joss has in store for LEGO fans.
This LEGO dragon may fit in the palm of your hand
One thing we learned from How to Train Your Dragon is that dragons do indeed come in many shapes and sizes, as evident in this dragon by Joss Woodyard, inspired by a toad which reminds me of the rock-eating Gronckle, especially with those tiny wings. Lots of long curved parts used as tails and claws are here used to sculpt the dragon’s large mouth and tongue. The small eye tiles commonly found in nightmare creatures from the LEGO Dreamzzz theme make perfect reptile eyes, while the transparent wing element makes a great dragonfly wing on this dragon’s lunch.
LEGO Creation of the Week (#15): Godzilla by Jayfa
Every week readers of the The Brothers Brick Telegram channel choose the Creation of the Week: one project that impressed all of us the most. Wonder what absolute domination looks like? Ask Joss Woodyard since his Gozilla just got more than half of all votes during the last Creation of the Week voting!
Meanwhile, the new vote is already on! Join our Telegram channel to follow all the best LEGO creations, latest news, and, of course, vote for your favorites. See you there!
All hail Godzilla, King of the Monsters
Is there anyone out there who thinks a giant sea-dwelling lizard monster isn’t cool? No? Good. How about one made of LEGO? An even more resounding no? Excellent! In which case, take a look at this epic Godzilla by Joss Woodyard. Godzilla has many incarnations, and this one is based on its appearance in the Monsterverse films. The texturing is simply incredible. Joss makes great use of the stepped bow slope and a variety of textured rock pieces for the monster’s rough skin. Worth paying careful attention to, though, are the ridges up the spine. This is a mish-mash of curved and straight slopes and tiles; simple parts, but used to devastating effect to complete Godzilla’s menacing form.
Godzilla might be the King of the Monsters, but we’ve featured plenty of his subjects in our monster archives.
Ogle this Oogway
Ozzie Joss Woodyard / Jayfa is ringing in the new year with the venerated sage kung fu master Oogway from the Kung Fu Panda film and TV franchise. Joss’ usual knack for character work shines brightly here as he recreates the tranquil master of the Jade Palace. This guy looks like he could teach a clumsy panda a thing or two! I love the use of the dragon wing cloth as Oogway’s tunic, and well-placed studs on the exposed sand green skin evoke the textured tortoise legs of the original character model from the movie.
Like what you see? There’s more Kung Fu Panda action to be found in our archives with this sculpted scene from the movie and excellent recreations of Masters Tigress and Crane.
A monstrous mole makes mischief
Joss Woodyard puts a mammalian twist on kaiju with Molethra. No mere garden pest, this giant beast has risen up from the subterranean depths to wreck untold havoc. Joss has done an amazing job of layering the stylized wing pieces to create a furry texture. And the damaged microscale city street does a perfect job of conveying the monster’s massive size.
This LEGO chameleon will leave you tongue tied
Builder Joss Woodyard is quite prolific with his many creature models and he hits the mark again with this wonderful chameleon. I really appreciate the color work here with the subtle difference between the bright green and medium azure in the body and the orange underside really pops. The articulated limbs using ball joints create tons of possibilities for action poses. I also love the perfectly curled tail and the extended tongue with tiny fly is the perfect finisher. According to the artist, instructions will be available for this colorful creature soon.
This build really gets my goat
One of my favorite creatures of folklore is the Chupacabra, an animal known for draining the blood of goats and other livestock. Builder Joss Woodyard has created a post-apocalyptic take on this cryptid with the Gamma Sucker. No doubt livestock is harder to come by in the wasteland, so this nuclear-powered techno-beast drinks the radiation from whatever it can.
The use of color here creates the sense of a mechanical creature that’s coursing with energy and life, despite its dirty and rusted frame. And I love the implied function of the “digestive system.” It’s so easy to imagine the absorbed radiation flowing through the trans-clear/lime hoses, into those processing tanks on the side, and then getting fed into the rear-mounted engine to drive those giant treads, which just push the monster forward in search of more radiation. It’s a vicious cycle, but a guy’s gotta eat.
Is it a snake, a fish, or both?
You wouldn’t want to encounter this frightening creature in the depths of the ocean. Joss Woodyard has created this beautiful twisted serpent with a glorious purple and medium azure colour scheme. Dragon wings form its striking dorsal fin and most likely provides the inspiration for the colourful pattern of the creature. The placement of its menacing teeth is similar to that of angler fish enforcing its aquatic qualities. However, the model still retains its serpentine aesthetic through the forked tongue at the mouth, represented by a dark red armour piece. Collecting all these pieces must have taken a great deal of time but it does really pay off as the model is able to look both elegant and threatening at the same time.
Skull Kid and the stolen mask
Even if you haven’t played The Legend of Zelda: Majora’s Mask, you may recognize it. It’s the symbol of one of the most popular games of its time. Expert LEGO character sculptor Joss Woodyard has graced us with this colorful and fun recreation of the evil Skull Kid. He does a great job of making the actual mask look like the original, but the rest of the body shouldn’t be overlooked. The bushes for arms and flippers for the pants really set it off.
While you’re here, check out more of Joss’s (AKA Jayfa’s) work. And if you’re into Link and the Legend of Zelda, we have that too, including another version of Majora’s Mask!
A spider mech to give you the creepy-crawlies
LEGO spider mechs aren’t too uncommon, but most of the time they give the impression of a machine with a lot of legs–after all, that’s what they are. But this one by Joss Woodyard is enough to trigger an arachnophobe. OK, technically it’s based on a Harvestman (AKA daddy longlegs) which isn’t a spider. But it’s still an arachnid, and with all those eyes and creepy arms and dripping….something–shudder–it definitely counts in my book. The green bits on the legs are the Technic wire clip, which you may have seen a lot of around here lately, since it’s being used in the latest Iron Builder challenge.